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Apollonius, Jesus
and Paul
Bone-Box No Proof
of Jesus
Beddru is Beddou is
Buddha
Christ Con Errata
Christ Conspiracy
Review | Excluded
Middle | Adam
Gorightly
Christ Conspiracy
Mithra: The Pagan Christ
by Acharya S/D.M. Murdock
(The following article is adapted from a chapter inSuns ofGod: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled, as well as excerpts
from other articles, such as "The Origins of Christianity" and
"The ZEITGEIST Sourcebook.")
"Both Mithras and Christ were described variously as 'the
Way,' 'the Truth,' 'the Light,' 'the Life,' 'the Word,' 'the Son of
God,' 'the Good Shepherd.' The Christian litany to Jesus could
easily be an allegorical litany to the sun-god. Mithras is often
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The Christmas Hoax
| Jesus is NOT the
'Reason for the
Season'
The Christ Myth
Debunking the
Christ Myth?
Easter: Christian or
Pagan?
The Historical
Jesus?
How Old is
Christianity? |
Antiquity of
Christian Doctrine
Is Jesus a Remake
of Osiris?
Josephus on Jesus |
Forgery and Fraud?
| Flavius
Testimonium
Jesus in India?
Jesus or Horus -
Born of a Virgin on
December 25th?
The Jesus Puzzle
Mithra the Pagan
Christ | Mithraism
and Christianit
represented as carrying a lamb on his shoulders, just as Jesus
is. Midnight services were found in both religions. The virgin
mother...was easily merged wit h t he virgin mother Mary.
Petra, the sacred rock of Mithraism, became Peter, the
foundation of the Christian Church."
Gerald Berry, Religions of the World
"Mithra or Mitra is...worshipped as Itu (Mitra-Mitu-Itu) inevery house of the Hindus in India. Itu (derivative of Mitu or
Mitra) is considered as the Vegetation-deity. This Mithra or
Mitra (Sun-God) is believed t o be a Mediator between God
and man, bet ween the Sky and t he Earth. It is said that
Mithra or [the] Sun took birth in the Cave on December 25th.
It is also the belief of the Christian world that Mithra or the
Sun-God was born of [a] Virgin. He travelled far and wide. He
has twelve satellites, which are taken as the Sun's
disciples.... [The Sun's] great festivals are observed in the
Winter Solstice and the Vernal EquinoxChristmas and
Easter. His symbol is the Lamb...."
Swami Prajnanananda, Christ the Saviour and Christ Myth
Because of its evident relationship to Christianity, special attention
needs to be paid to the Persian/Roman religion of Mithraism. The worship
of the Indo-Persian god Mithra dates back centuries to millennia
preceding the common era. T he god is found as "Mitra" in the IndianVedic religion, which is over 3,500 years old, by conservative estimates.
When the Iranians separated from their Indian brethren, Mitra became
known as "Mithra" or "Mihr," as he is also called in Persian.
By around 1500 BCE, Mithra worship
had made it to the Near East, in the
Indian kingdom of the Mitanni, who
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Freethought Gear
"With so much of our
global social structure
based on holy writ of
some sort of another,
it is imperative thatwe examine
thoroughly our
sacred cows and not
shirk from exposing
them to the bright
Deus Invictus Sol Mithras, Sol Invictus Mithras...
...Strabo, 15.3.13 (p. 732C), basing his information on a lost
work, either by Posidonius (ca 135-51 BC) or by Apollodorus
of Artemita (first decades of 1 cent. BC), states baldly that
the Western Parthians "call the sun Mithra." The Roman cult
seems to have taken this existing association and developed
it in their own special way. (Gordon, "FAQ." (Emph. added.))
"Mithra is who the monuments proclaim himthe
Unconquered Sun."
As concerns Mithra's identity, Mithraic scholar Dr. Roger Beck says:
Mithras...is the prime traveller, the principal actor...on the
celestial stage which the tauctony [bull-slaying] defines....
He is who the monuments proclaim himthe Unconquered
Sun. (Beck (2004), 274)
In an early image, Mithra is depicted as a sun disc in a chariot drawn by
white horses, another solar motif that made it into the Jesus myth, in
which Christ is to return on a white horse. (Rev 6:2; 19:11)
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sunlight." D.M.
Murdock, Who Was
Jesus?, p. 264
"The patriachal age
has represented the
military campaign of
the sky-god father-
figure against theearth-goddess
mother-figure."
Acharya S, The Christ
Conspiracy, p. 415
Mithra in the Roman Empire
Subsequent to the military campaign of Alexander the Great in the fourth
century BCE, Mithra became the "favorite deity" of Asia Minor. Christian
writers Dr. Samuel Jackson and George W. Gilmore, editors ofThe New
Schaff-Herzog Encyc lopedia of Religious Knowledge (VII, 420), remark:
It was probably at this period, 250-100 B.C., that the
Mithraic system of ritual and doctrine took the form which itafterward retained. Here it c ame into contac t with the
mysteries, of which there were many varieties, among which
the most notable were those of Cybele.
According to the Roman historian Plutarch (c. 46-120 AD/CE), Mithraism
began to be absorbed by the Romans during Pompey's military campaign
against Cilician pirates around 70 BCE. The religion eventually migrated
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found?Every so often weread excitingheadlinesproclaiming that the"world's oldest thisor...
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which demonstrates a distinct development but which nonetheless
follows a pattern of this earlier solar mythos and ritual. The theory of
"continuity" from the Iranian to Roman Mithraism developed famously by
scholar Dr. Franz Cumont in the 20th century has been largely rejected
by many scholars. Yet , Plutarch himself (Life of Pompey, 24) related
that followers of Mithras "continue to the present time" the "secret rites"
of the Cilician pirates, "having been first instituted by them." So too
does t he ancient writer Porphyry (234-c . 305 AD/CE) st ate that the
Roman Mithraists themselves believed their religion had been founded by
the Persian savior Zoroaster.
In discussing what may have been
recounted by anc ient writers asserted to
have written many volumes about
Mithraism, such as Eubulus of Palestine and
"a c ertain Pallas," Dr. Bec k remarks:
"Certainly Zoroaster would have figuredlargely; and so would the Persians and the
magi." It seems that the ancients
themselves did not divorce the eastern
roots of Mithraism, as exemplified also by
the remarks of Dio Cassius, who related
that in 66 AD/CE t he king of Armenia,
Tiridates, visited Rome. Cassius states that
the dignitary worshipped Mithra; yet, he
does not indicate any distinctionbetween the Armenian's religion and Roman
Mithraism.
It is apparent from their testimony that ancient sources perceived
Mithraism as having a Persian origin; hence, it would seem that any true
picture of the development of Roman Mithraism must include the latter's
relationship to the earlier Persian cultus, as well as its Asia Minor and
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recently challengedthe...
Another 'smokinggun' proving theBible a myth?We all know thebiblical story in theBook of Exodusabout the Israelite
prophet Mosesascending...
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Muslims demandFacebook adhereto Islamic/sharialaw
A comment is beingcirculated onFacebookcomplaining that thesite has not onlyallowed...
Inside Iran's sexslave industryIranians protestingelection of
. .
(2004; 28):
Since the 1970s, scholars of western Mithraism have
generally agreed that Cumont's master narrative of east-
west transfer is unsustainable; but...recent trends in the
scholarship on Iranian religion, by modifying the picture of
that religion prior to the birth of the western mysteries, now
render a revised Cumontian scenario of east-west transferand continuities once again viable.
The Many Faces of Mithra
Mainstream scholarship speaks of at least three Mithras: Mitra, the
Vedic god; Mithra, the Persian deity; and Mithras, the Greco-Roman
mysteries icon. However, the
Persian Mithra apparently
developed differently in variousplaces, such as in Armenia, where
there appeared to be emphasis on
characteristics not overtly present
in Roman Mithraism but found as
motifs within Christianity, including
the Virgin Mother Goddess. This
Armenian Mithraism is evidently a continuity of the Mithraism of Asia
Minor and the Near East. This development of gods taking on different
forms, shapes, colors, ethnicities and other attributes according tolocation, era and so on is not only quite common but also the norm.
Thus, we have hundreds of gods and goddesses who are in many ways
interchangeable but who have adopted various differences based on
geographical and environmental factors.
Mithra and Christ
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Source of BibleCovenant with
Over the centuriesin fact, from the earliest Christian timesMithraism
has been compared to Christianity, revealing numerous similarities
between the two faiths' doctrines and traditions, including as concerns
stories of its respective godmen. In developing this analysis, it should be
kept in mind that elements from Roman, Armenian and Persian Mithraism
are utilized, not as a whole ideology but as separate items that may
have affected the creation of Christianity, whether directly through the
mechanism of Mithraism or through another Pagan source within the
Roman Empire and beyond. The evidence points t o these motifs and
elements being adopted into Christianity not as a whole from one source
but singularly from manysources, including Mithraism.
"The evidence points to these motifs and elements being
adopted into Christianity..."
Thus, the following list represents not a solidified mythos or narrative of
one particular Mithra or form of the god as developed in oneparticular culture and era but, rather, a combination of them all for ease
of reference as to any possible influences upon Christianity under the
name of Mitra/Mithra/Mithras.
Mithra has the following in common with the Jesus character:
Mithra was born on December 25th of the virgin Anahita.
The babe was wrapped in swaddling clothes, placed in a manger
and attended by shepherds.
He was considered a great traveling teacher and master.
He had 12 companions or "disciples."
He performed miracles.
As the "great bull of the Sun," Mithra sacrificed himself for world
peace.
He ascended to heaven.
Mithra was viewed as the Good Shepherd,
the "Way, the Truth and the Light," the
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Redeemer, the Savior, the Messiah.
Mithra is omniscient, as he "hears all, sees
all, knows all: none can deceive him."
He was identified with both the Lion and
the Lamb.
His sacred day was Sunday, "the Lord's Day," hundreds of years
before the appearance of Christ.
His religion had a eucharist or "Lord's Supper."
Mithra "sets his marks on the foreheads of his soldiers."
Mithraism emphasized baptism.
December 25th Birthday
The similarities between Mithraism and Christianity have included their
chapels, the t erm "father" for priest, c elibac y and, it is notoriously
claimed, the December 25th birthdat e. Over the c enturies, apologists
contending that Mithraism copied Christianity nevertheless haveasserted that the December 25th birthdate was taken from Mithraism.
As Sir Arthur Weigall says:
December 25th was really the date, not of the birth of Jesus,
but of the sun-god Mithra. Horus, son of Isis, however, was
in very early times identified with Ra, the Egyptian sun-god,
and hence with Mithra...
Mithra's birthday on December 25th has been so widely claimed that theCatholic Encyclopedia ("Mithraism") remarks: "The 25 December was
observed as his birthday, the natalis invicti, the rebirth of the winter-
sun, unconquered by the rigours of the season."
Yet this contention of Mithra's birthday on December 25th or the winter
solstice is disputed because there is no hard archaeological or literary
evidence of the Roman Mithras specifically being named as having been
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born at that time. Says Dr. Alvar:
There is no evidence of any kind, not even a hint, from
within the c ult that t his, or any other winter day, was
important in the Mithraic calendar. (Alvar, 410)
In analyzing the evidence, we must keep in mind all the destruction that
has taken place over the past 2,000 yearsincluding that of
many Mithraic remains and textsas well as the fac t that several ofthese germane parallels constituted mysteries that may or may not have
been rec orded in the first place or the meanings of whic h have been
obscured.
The claim about the Roman Mithras's birth on
"Christmas" is evidently based on the Calendar
of Filocalus or Philocalian Calendar (c. 354
AD/CE), which mentions that December 25th
represents the "Birthday of the Unconquered,"understood t o refer to the sun and taken to
indicate Mithras as Sol Invictus. Whether it
represents Mithras's birthday specifically or
"merely" that of Emperor Aurelian's Sol
Invictus, with whom Mithras has been
identified, the Calendar also lists the daythe
winter solstice birth of the sunas that of
natus Christus in Betleem Iudeae: "Birth of
Christ in Bethlehem Judea."
Moreover, it would seem that there is more to
this story, as Aurelian was the first to institute offic ially the winter
solstice as the birthday of Sol Invictus (Dies Natalis Solis Invicti) in 274
AD/CE. (Halsberghe, 158) It is contended that Aurelian's move was in
response to Mithras's popularity. (Restaud, 4) One would thus wonder
why the emperor would be so motivated if Mithras had nothing
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whatsoever to do with the sun god's traditional birthdaya disconnect
that would be unusual for anysolar deity.
Regardless of whether or not the artifacts of the Roman Mithras's
votaries reflect the attribution of the sun god's birthday to him
specifically, many in the empire did identify the mysteries icon and Sol
Invictus as one, evidenced by the inscriptions of "Sol Invictus Mithras"
and the many images of Mithras and the sun together, representing two
sides of the same coin or each other's alter ego. Hence, the placementof Mithras's birth on this feast day of the sun is understandable and,
despite the lack of concrete evidence at this date, quite plausibly
was recognized in this manner in antiquity in the Roman Empire.
Persian Winter Festivals
In addition, it is clear that the ancient peoples from whom Mithraism
sprang, long before it was Romanized, were very much involved in winter
festivals so common among many other cultures globally. In this regard,
discussing the Iranian month of Asiyadaya, which corresponds to
November/December, Mithraic scholar Dr. Mary Boyce remarks:
...it is at this time of year that the Zoroastrian festival of
Sada takes place, which is not only probably pre-Zoroastrian
in origin, but may even go back to proto-Indo-European
times. For Sada is a great open-air festival, of a kind
celebrated widely among t he Indo-European peoples, with
the intention of strengthening the heavenly fire, the sun, in
its winter dec line and feebleness. Sun and f ire being of
profound significance in the Old Iranian religion, this is a
festival which one would expect the Medes and Persians to
have brought with them into their new lands... Sada is not,
however, a feast in honour of the god of Fire, Atar, but is
rather for the general strengthening of the creation of fire
against the onslaught of winter. (Boyce (1982), 24-25)
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This anc ient Persian winter festival therefore celebrates the
strengthening of the "fire" or sun in the face its winter decline, just as
virtually every winter-solstice fest ivity is intended t o do. Yet, as Dr.
Boyce says, this "Zoroastrian" winter celebration is likely pre-Zoroastrian
and even proto-Indo-European, which means it dates back far into the
hoary mists of time, possibly tens of thousands of years ago. And one
would indeed expect the Medes and Persians to bring this festival with
them into their new lands, including the Near East, where they wouldeventually encounter Romans, who could hardly have missed this
common solar motif celebrated worldwide in numerous ways.
"The Mithraists believed that this night is the night of the
birth of Mithra, Persian god of light and truth."
The same may be said as concerns
another Persian or Zoroastrian winter
celebration called "Yalda," which is the
fest ival of t he Longest Night of the
Year, taking place on December 20th or
the day before the solstice:
Yalda has a history as long as the
Mithraism religion. The Mithraists
believed that this night is the
night of the birth of Mithra,
Persian god of light and truth. At
the morning of the longest night
of the year the Mithra is born from a virgin mother....
In Zoroastrian tradition, the winter solstice with the longest
night of the year was an auspicious day, and included
customs intended to protect people from misfortune.... The
Eve of the Yalda has great significance in the Iranian
l d It i th f th bi th f Mith th S G d
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calendar. It is the eve of the birth of Mithra, the Sun God,
who symbolized light, goodness and strength on earth.
Shab-e Yalda is a time of joy.
Yalda is a Syriac word meaning birth. Mithra- worshippers
used the term "yalda" specifically with reference to the birth
of Mithra. As the longest night of the year, the Eve of Yalda
(Shab-e Yalda) is also a turning point, after which the days
grow longer. In ancient times it symbolized the triumph ofthe Sun God over the powers of darkness. ("Yalda,"
Wikipedia)
It is likely that this festival does indeed derive from remote antiquity,
and it is evident that the ancient Persians were well aware of the winter
solstice and its meaning as found in numerous other cultures: To wit,
the annual "rebirth," "renewal" or "resurrection" of the sun.
"'Christmas' is the birth not of the 'son of God' but ofthesun."
In the end the effect is the same: "Christmas" is the birth not of the
"son of God" but of the sun. Indeed, there is much evidenceincluding
many ancient monumental alignmentsto demonstrate that this highly
noticeable and cherished event of the winter solstice was celebrated
beginning hundreds to t housands of years before the c ommon era in
numerous parts of the world. The observation was thus provably taken
over by Christianity, not as biblical doctrine but as a later tradition in
order to compete with the Pagan cults, a move we contend occurred
with numerous other "Christian" motifs, including many that are in the
New Testament.
Mithra the 'Rock-Born'
Mithra's genesis out of a rock, analogous to t he birth in caves of a
number of gods including Jesus in the apocryphal non canonical
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number of godsincluding Jesus in the apocryphal, non-canonical
texts was followed by his adoration by shepherds, another motif that
found its way into the later Christianity. Regarding the birth in caves
likewise common to pre-Christian gods, and present in the early legends
of Jesus, Weigall relates (50):
...the cave shown at Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus
was actually a rock shrine in which the god Tammuz or
Adonis was worshipped, as the early Christian father Jerometells us; and its adoption as t he scene of the birth of our
Lord was one of those frequent instances of the taking over
by Christians of a pagan sacred site. The propriety of this
appropriation was increased by the fact that the worship of a
god in a cave was commonplace in paganism: Apollo, Cybele,
Demeter, Herakles, Hermes, Mithra and Poseidon were all
adored in caves; Hermes, the Greek Logos, being actually
born of Maia in a cave, and Mithra being "rock-born."
As the "rock-born," Mithras was called
"Theos ek Petras," or the "God from the
Rock." As Weigall also relates:
Indeed, it may be that the reason of
the Vatican hill at Rome being
regarded as sacred to Peter, the
Christian "Rock," was that it was
already sacred to Mithra, for Mithraicremains have been found there.
Mithras was "the rock," or Peter, and was
also "double-faced," like Janus the keyholder, likewise a prototype for
the "apostle" Peter. Hence, when Jesus is made to say (in the apparent
interpolation at Matthew 16:12) that the keys of the kingdom of heaven
are given to "Peter" and that the Church is to be built upon "Peter," as a
representative of Rome he is usurping the authority of Mithraism which
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representative of Rome, he is usurping the authority of Mithraism, which
was precisely headquartered on what became Vatican Hill.
"Mithraic remains on Vatican Hill are foundunderneath the
later Christian edifices, whichproves the Mithra cult was
there first."
By the time the Christian hierarchy prevailed in Rome, Mithra had already
been a popular cult, with pope, bishops, etc., and its doctrines were
well established and widespread, reflecting a certain antiquity. Mithraic
remains on Vatican Hill are found underneath the later Christian edifices,
whichproves the Mithra cult was there first. In fact, while Mithraic ruins
are abundant throughout the Roman Empire, beginning in the late first
century AD/CE, "The earliest church remains, found in Dura-Europos,
date only from around 230 CE."
The Virgin Mother AnahitaUnlike various other rock- or cave-born gods, Mithra is not depicted in
the Roman cultus as having been given birth by a mortal woman or a
goddess; henc e, it is c laimed t hat he was not "born of a virgin."
However, a number of writers over t he centuries have asserted
otherwise, including several modern Persian and Armenian scholars who
are apparently reflecting an ancient tradition from Near Eastern
Mithraism.
"The worship of Mithra and Anahita, the virgin mother of
Mithra, was well-known in the Achaemenian period."
For example, Dr. Badi Badiozamani says
that a "person" named "Mehr" or Mithra
was "born of a virgin named Nahid
Anahita ('immaculate')" and that "the
worship of Mithra and Anahita the
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worship of Mithra and Anahita, the
virgin mother of Mithra, was well-
known in the Achaemenian period [558-
330 BCE]..." (Badiozamani, 96)
Philosophy professor Dr. Mohammed Ali
Amir-Moezzi states: "Dans le
mithrasme, ainsi que le mazdisme
populaire, (A)Nhd, mre de Mithra/Mehr, est vierge""In Mithraism, as
in popular Mazdaism, Anahid, the mother of Mithra, is a virgin." (Amir-Moezzi, 78-79) Comparing the rock birth with that of the virgin mother,
Dr. Amir-Moezzi also says:
...il y a donc analogie entre le roc her, symbole
d'incorruptibilit, qui donne naissance au dieu iranien et la
mre de celui-ci, Anhd, ternellement vierge et jeune.
(...so there is analogy between the rock, a symbol of
incorruptibility, giving birth to the Iranian god and themother of that (same) one, Anahid, eternally virgin and
young.)
In Mithraic Iconography and Ideology (78), Dr. Leroy A. Campbell calls
Anahita the "great goddess of virgin purity," and Religious History
professor Dr. Claas J. Bleeker says, "In the Avestan religion she is the
typical virgin." (Bleeker (1963), 100)
One modern writer ("Mithraism and Christianity") portrays the Mithramyth thus:
According to Persian mythology, Mithras was born of a virgin
given the title "Mother of God."
The Parthian princes of Armenia were all priests of Mithras,
and an entire district of this land was dedicated to the Virgin
Mother Anahita. Many Mithraeums, or Mithraic temples, were
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Mother Anahita. Many Mithraeums, or Mithraic temples, were
built in Armenia, which remained one of the last strongholds
of Mithraism. The largest near-eastern Mithraeum was built in
western Persia at Kangavar, dedicat ed t o "Anahita, the
Immaculate Virgin Mother of the Lord Mithras."
Anahita, also known as "Anaitis"whose
very name means "Pure" and "Untainted"
and who was equated in antiquity with thevirgin goddess Artemisis certainly an
Indo-Iranian goddess of some antiquity,
dating back at least to the first half of the
first millennium prior to the common era and
enjoying "widespread popularity" around
Asia Minor. Indeed, Anahita has been called
"the best known divinity of the Persians" in
Asia Minor. (de Jong, 268)
Moreover, concerning Mithra Schaff-Herzog
says, "The Achaemenidae worshiped him as
making the great triad with Ahura and Anahita." Ostensibly, this "triad"
was the same as God the Father, the Virgin and Jesus, which would tend
to confirm the assertion that Anahita was Mithra's virgin mother. That
Anahita was closely associated with Mithra at least five centuries before
the common era is evident from the equation made by Herodotus (1.131)
in naming "Mitra" as t he Persian counterpart of the Near and Middle
Eastern goddesses Alilat and Mylitta. (de Jong, 269-270)
Moreover, Mithra's prototype, the Indian Mitra, was likewise born of a
female, Aditi, the "mother of the gods," the inviolable or virgin dawn.
Hence, we would expect an earlier form of Mithra also to possess this
virgin-mother motif, which seems to have been lost or deliberately
severed in the all-male Roman Mithraism.
Well known to scholars, the pre-Christian divine birth and virgin mother
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e o to sc o a s, t e p e C st a d e b t a d g ot e
motifs are documented in the archaeological and literary records, as
verified by Dr. Marguerite Rigoglioso in The Cult of the Divine Birth in
Ancient Greece and Virgin Mother Goddesses of Antiquity.
Mithra and the Twelve
The theme of the teaching god and "the
Twelve" is found within Mithraism, as Mithrais depicted as surrounded by the 12 zodiac
signs on a number of monuments and in the
writings of Porphyry (4.16), for one. These
12 signs are sometimes portrayed as
humans and, as they have been in the
case of numerous sun gods, could be called
Mithra's 12 "companions" or "disciples."
Regarding t he Twelve, John M. Robertsonsays:
On Mithraic monuments we find representat ions of twelve
episodes, probably corresponding to the twelve labors in the
stories of Herac les, Samson and ot her Sun-heroes, and
probably also connected with initiation.
The comparison of this common motif with Jesus and the 12 has been
made on many occasions, including in an extensive study entitled,"Mithras and Christ: some iconographical similarities," by Professor A.
Deman in Mithraic Studies.
Early Church Fathers on Mithraism
Mithraism was so popular in the Roman Empire and so similar in important
aspects to Christianity that several Church fathers were compelled to
address it, disparagingly of course. These fathers included Justin Martyr,
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, p g g y y ,
Tertullian, Julius Firmicus Maternus and Augustine, all of whom attributed
these striking correspondences to the prescient devil. In other words,
anticipating Christ, the devil set about to fool the Pagans by imitating
the coming messiah. In reality, the testimony of these Church fathers
confirms that these various motifs, characteristics, traditions and myths
predated Christianity.
"Christianity took a leaf out of the devil's book when itfixed the birth of the Saviour on the twenty-fifth of
December."
Concerning this "devil did it" argument, in The Worship of Nature Sir
James G. Frazer remarks:
If the Mithraic mysteries were indeed a Satanic copy of a
divine original, we are driven to conclude that Christianity
took a leaf out of the devil's book when it fixed the birth of
the Saviour on the twenty-fifth of December; for there can
be no doubt that the day in question was celebrated as the
birthday of the Sun by the heathen before the Church, by an
aft erthought, arbitrarily t ransferred t he Nativity of its
Founder from the sixth of January to the twenty-fifth of
December.
Regarding the various similarities between Mithra and Christ, as well as
the defenses of the Church fathers, the author ofThe Existence of
Christ Disprovedremarks:
Augustine, Firmicus, Justin,
Tertullian, and others, having
perceived the exact resemblance
between the religion of Christ and
the religion of Mithra, did, with an
impertinence only to be equalled by
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its outrageous absurdity, insist that
the devil, jealous and malignant,
induced the Persians to establish a
religion the exact image of
Christianity that was to befor
these worthy saints and sinners of
the church could not deny that the worship of Mithra
preceded that of Christso that , t o get out of the ditc h,they summoned the devil to their aid, and with the most
astonishing assurance, t hus ac counted for the striking
similarity between the Persian and the Christian religion, the
worship of Mithra and the worship of Christ; a mode of
getting rid of a difficulty that is at once so stupid and
absurd, that it would be almost equally stupid and absurd
seriously to refute it.
"It is good practice to steer clear of all informationprovided by Christian writers: they are not 'sources,' they
are violent apologists."
In response to a question about Tertullian's discussion of the purported
Mithraic forehead mark, Dr. Gordonhonorary professor of
Religionsgeschichte der Antike at the University of Erfurt,
Thuringensays:
In general, in studying Mithras, and the other Greco-oriental
mystery cults, it is good practice to steer clear of all
information provided by Christian writers: they are not
"sources," they are violent apologists, and one does best
not to believe a word they say, however tempting it is to
supplement our ignorance with such stuff. (Gordon, "FAQ")
He also cautions about speculation concerning Mithraism and states that
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"there is practically no limit to the fantasies of scholars," an interesting
admission about the hallowed halls of academia.
Priority: Mithraism or Christianity?
It is obvious from the remarks of the Church fat hers and from the
literary and archaeological record that Mithraism in some form preceded
Christianity by c enturies. The fact is that there is no Christianarchaeological evidence earlier than the earliest Roman Mithraic
archaeological evidence and that the preponderance of evidence points
to Christianity being formulated during the secondcentury, not based on
a "historical" personage of the early first century. As one important
example, the canonical gospels as we have them do not show up clearly
in the literary record until the end of the second century.
Mithra's pre-Christian roots are attested in the Vedic and Avestan texts,
as well as by historians such as Herodotus (1.131) and Xenophon(Cyrop. viii. 5, 53 and c. iv. 24), among others. Nor is it likely that the
Roman Mithras is not essentially the same as the Indian sun god Mitra
and Persian-Phrygian Mithra in his major attributes, as well as some of
his most pertinent rites.
Moreover, it is erroneously asserted that because Mithraism was a
"mystery c ult" it did not leave any written record. In reality, much
evidence of Mithra worship has been destroyed, including not only
monuments, iconography and other artifacts, but also numerous booksby ancient authors. The existence of written evidence is indicated by
the Egyptian cloth "manuscript" from the first century BCE called,
"Mummy Funerary Inscription of the Priest of Mithras, Ornouphios, Son fo
Artemis" or MS 247.
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As previously noted, two of the ancient writers on Mithraism are Pallas,
and Eubulus, the latter of whom, according to Jerome (Against
Jovinianus, 2.14; Sc haff 397), "wrote the history of Mithras in many
volumes." Discussing Eubulus and Pallas, Porphyry too related that there
were "several elaborate treatises setting forth the religion of Mithra."
The writings of the early Church fat hers t hemselves provide much
evidence as to what Mithraism was all about, as do the archaeologicalartifacts stretching from India to Scotland.
These many written volumes doubtlessly contained much interesting
information that was damaging t o Christianity, such as the important
correspondences between t he "lives" of Mithra and Jesus, as well as
identical symbols such as the cross, and rites such as baptism and the
eucharist. In fact, Mithraism was so similar to Christianity that it gave
fits to the early Church fathers, as it does to this day to apologists, who
attempt both to deny the similarities and yet to claim that these (non-existent) correspondences were plagiarized byMithraism
from Christianity.
"Regardless of attempts to make Mithraism the plagiarist
of Christianity, the fact will remain that Mithraism was
first."
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Bleeker, Claas J. The Sacred Bridge: Researches into the Nature and
St t f R li i L id E J B ill 1963
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Structure of Religion. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1963.
Boyce, Mary. "Mithraism: Mithra Khsathrapati and his brother Ahura."
www.iranchamber.com/religions/articles/mithra_khsathrapati_ahura.php
A History of Zoroastrianism, II. Leiden/Kln: E.J. Brill, 1982.
Campbell, LeRoy A. Mithraic Iconography and Ideology. Leiden: E.J. Brill,
1968.
de Jong, Albert. Traditions of the Magi: Zoroastrianism in Greek and
Latin Literature. Leiden/New York: Brill, 1997.Forbes, Bruce David. Christmas: A Candid History. Berkeley/London:
University of California Press, 2007.
Frazer, James G. The Worship of Nature, I. London: Macmillan, 1926.
Gordon, Richard L. "FAQ." Electronic Journal of Mithraic Studies,
www.hums.canterbury.ac.nz/clas/ejms/faq.htm
"The date and significance of CIMRM 593 (British Museum, Townley
Collection."Journal of Mithraic Studies, II: 148-174.
hums.canterbury.ac.nz/clas/ejms/out_of_print/JMSv2n2/
JMSv2n2Gordon.pdf
Halsberghe, Gaston H. The Cult of Sol Invictus. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1972.
Hinnells, John R., ed. Mithraic Studies: Proceedings of the First
International Congress of Mithraic Studies. Manchester: Manchester
University Press, 1975.
Kosso, Cynthia, and Anne Scott. The Nature and Funct ion of Water,
Baths, Bathing and Hygiene from Antiquity through the Renaissance.
Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2009.
Lundy, John P. Monumental Christianity. New York: J.W. Bouton, 1876.Molnar, Michael R. The Star of Bethlehem: The Legacy of the Magi. New
Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1999.
The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia, VII. eds. Samuel M. Jackson and
George William Gilmore. New York/London: Funk and Wagnalls Company,
1910.
Plutarch. "Life of Pompey." The Parallel Lives by Plutarch, V. Loeb, 1917;
penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/
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